We know it is not enough to just teach kids about geometry, world history and biology. They need to be taught about how to cope with anxiety, help a friend with depression, report a sexual assault and support a bullied classmate.
Before the pandemic, kids were already dealing with a lot— depression, anxiety, suicide, bullying, eating disorders, abuse, drug addiction— just to name a few.
The pandemic exacerbated many of these issues for kids—and added on new ones— lack of in-person school, absence of usual routine and structure, cancellation of school and extracurricular activities, lack of access to trusted adults at school and overall fear and anxiety about contracting COVID and losing family members.
Students are dealing with tremendous stress, anxiety, and grief because of this crisis— food insecurity, homelessness, parents who have lost jobs, lack of access to mental health services and loved ones who have passed away from the virus. Furthermore, while for most being home is safe, there are many who are not as fortunate due to domestic violence at home.
Sadly, the pandemic made the issue of mental health, especially among kids and teens, a widely discussed topic.
We know that most school districts and schools are not fully equipped to deal with the trauma caused by this pandemic. They don’t have the necessary infrastructure and resources in place to properly address the needs of their students.
For decades in the United States, the traditional health education model has consisted of adult PE coaches/health teachers lecturing, using outdated textbooks, cheesy videos and material kids found irrelevant. Many states either maintain this model or they have abandoned it completely without replacing it with anything new and innovative.
Many large school districts have school counselors assigned to 400-600 students. They barely have time to go over academic course selection— let alone discuss psycho-social issues with their students. Many schools also do not have a nurse or a clinic to address the health needs of students.
We know that children who are physically and emotionally well perform better in the classroom. While there has been a tremendous focus on “lost learning time” from the pandemic, we cannot lose sight of the fact that students can only excel in the classroom when we address the physical and emotional issues in their lives and in the lives of their families. If a student is sick with asthma, it’s harder to focus in school. If a student’s parents are going through a divorce, it’s harder to focus in school. If a student is struggling with body image issues, it’s harder to focus in school.
We must address the stressors and distractions in students’ lives for them to achieve academically.
Schools need to be ready in the fall to address the tremendous trauma students have been experiencing during the past year and a half.
We need to provide higher quality health education and more health resources in our schools.
Our children deserve that.
About the author
Risa Berrin is the Founder & Executive Director of Health Information Project, Inc. (HIP). HIP is the only peer-to-peer comprehensive health education program for high school students in the country. HIP’s innovative peer health education model empowers high school students to create high school campuses that are safe, supportive and inclusive. Leading up to starting HIP in 2009, Risa spent the early part of her career devoted to education, journalism and law. Risa is a graduate of the University of Michigan and the University of Miami School of Law.
